eat more pie

I do this thing, when I make a new dish, where I get really nervous it won't work out and then try to lower everyone's expectations regarding the dish. I start to fret, and then I voice my concerns, which are usually just "what if I messed something up."

After a trip to Pennsylvania, I came home with a bag full of apples, from the orchard next door to my grandparents' new (-ish) house. Pie was the obvious solution, but I am - confession time - not a big fan of pie. (Pumpkin pie is the exception. I love pumpkin pie so much.) I forget sometimes that other people kind of love pie. So when I asked Daniel if he wanted some of the pie I was planning on making, he answered, "Obviously," and I felt a little sheepish.



I'm not sure why I never got that into pie. I think it was something like raw fruits were fine, why would you bake them into a pastry? I know, I know. That's a weird thing to think. I recognize that.

Maybe it just took baking one myself. Because seriously, despite all that above, I kind of loved this pie. I stood in the kitchen eating pie out of the pan. Just a tiny slice, to see if it passed. Fresh from the oven. I served Daniel and Michael and hurried back to eat more pie.

The pie was gone by the end of the night.



Vegan Apple Pie
adapted from Ratio, by Michael Ruhlman

One of the best things about this pie is that it really highlights the apples. You know, like it should. The crust wasn't sweetened, in a serendipitous mistake. As Daniel said, "it's not like a sugar-punch to the face." It won over Michael, who is also not a big fan of pies. All in all, a winner.

Also, if you're not making this for a vegan audience, you can happily use butter. It should be noted, however, that I've made it both ways and I could not tell you which was more delicious.

3 medium-to-large apples
2 tbsp sugar
cinnamon
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
2 sticks margarine, cold or frozen
1/2 c. ice water
pinch of salt

Peel and chop your apples. I like to have small, bite-sized pieces in my pie, but feel free to chop to whatever size you desire! Place them in a medium-sized bowl and toss in the sugar and a couple shakes of cinnamon. Mix with your hands and let sit while you make the dough.

Measure out the flour into a large mixing bowl. Cut the butter into small pats and rub into the flour until you have even smaller pea-sized pieces. Slowly add in water until the mixture starts to become dough-like. Make sure not to overwork the dough - knead it just until it comes together. Split the dough into two.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

On a floured surface, roll out one chunk of dough. This will be your bottom crust. Go ahead and place the rolled out dough into your pie pan and remove the excess dough around the edges. Put the filling inside. Now comes the fun part: you can choose what kind of top crust you want. You could simply roll out the other chunk and have a plain crust (making sure to make some slits for the steam to escape), or you can make a lattice crust, which is what I did. For that, roll out the second chunk of dough - I did this a little at a time, so I didn't overwork the excess dough. Using a knife or a pastry cutter, cut some slices of dough. Place them on top of the filling, weaving them as you go.

When you're done, place the pie in the oven and bake until the crust is golden and flaky.